We welcome the Choir of Men and Boys from Christ Church Cathedral, Ottawa who will sing for us on Sunday evening 29 June at the 6:00 p.m. service of Holy Communion.
Offertory Anthem
…..A new song…….James MacMillan
Communion Anthem
…..Expectans expectavi…….Charles Wood
Hymns:
525,
The Church’s one foundation…..AURELIA
609, Where cross the crowded ways of life…..GARDINER
315, Thou, who at thy first Eucharist didst pray…..SONG I
656, Blest are the pure in heart…..FRANCONIA
518, Christ is made the sure foundation…..WESTMINSTER ABBEY
Sanctus, S-130, Franz Schubert
Ottawa’s Anglican/Episcopal Cathedral has been home to a choir of men and boys since the end of the nineteenth century. Under the longtime stewardship of Dr. Godfrey Hewitt (1931-80), the choir achieved a level of excellence to rival similar choirs in the United States and Britain, and in more recent times, the choir has continued this important work, singing across Canada, the eastern United States, and overseas with distinction. The choir sings weekday and Sunday services, and rehearse several times weekly in preparation for weekly liturgical performances, with a regular schedule of concert appearances inside the Cathedral and beyond. They are frequent guests of Ottawa’s National Arts Centre Orchestra, and have participated in a number of large-scale performances with the NACO, including in recent seasons Mahler’s “Symphony of a Thousand”, Orff’s “Carmina Burana”, and Kodaly’s “Psalmus Hungaricus”. The boys hail from across the National Capital Region, and the men are drawn from various walks-of-life, including professional lay clerks and student members.
An alumnus of the University of Toronto, and the Royal College of Music, Matthew Larkin has served as the Cathedral’s Organist and Director of Music since 2003. A tireless advocate for boys’ choirs, he has directed the choir in concert performances of Handel’s “Messiah” several times, along with Bach’s “St. John”, and “St. Matthew” Passions, “Requiems” by Duruflé, Faure, and Mozart, and many other notable works. Under his direction, the choir has served as choir-in-residence at Ely, Salisbury, and St. Paul’s Cathedrals (UK), at St. Mary’s Cathedral (Edinburgh), and they have performed to critical acclaim in Boston, New York, Paris, and other places.